Today marks an exciting moment in my life (<< and probably nerve-wracking, like a riding a crazy, twisty roller coaster!). My day job is history, and I’m jumping all-in to a new beginning. It’s the proverbial fresh start, with a canvas in front of me that is crisp, clean, and…COMPLETELY BLANK.

The Big Man Upstairs has been preparing me for this moment for a few months—I’ve been given a beautiful gift—and yet I have no idea exactly what to do next or where this journey of mine is going. I’m also kind of terrified of screwing it up.

If I let my fear run the show, filling the white space could become a daunting task. Paralyzing me in an overwhelming and I’m-afraid-of-doing-the-wrong-thing-for-my-life kind of way.

Where do I go from here?
What is the right thing for my life?
How do I know it’s the right thing?
What are the actions I’m supposed to take?
What is the path to get to where I’m supposed to go?

The Truth is, I have none of the answers, because these are the wrong questions. These are questions one asks when trying to fill white space, and what I’ve discovered is that this is not my Work right now! There is nothing white about the space here; it’s just a patch of brown with my name on it. Dirt brown, in fact, and I know exactly what to do with it.

Just like May is the time of year to plant a garden in North Dakota, so it is my Work at the beginning of this chapter of my life. I can’t claim to be a professional gardener, but I do know the basics. I also know that pouring in the sweat equity and giving my garden TLC along the way will result in beautiful blooms and a bountiful harvest.

There are miracles in gardening.

What do I get to do next?
What is my next right step?
Who do I get to serve today and how do I get to serve them powerfully?

I saw a cartoon come through one of my social feeds today. Charlie Brown and Snoopy sitting on the dock of a lake.

Charlie says, “One day, we will die Snoopy…”

Snoopy replied, “Yes, but every other day, we will live.”

Every day when you wake up in the morning, you get a choice about who you want to be and how you want to show up for your life.

What’s it going to be today—fully alive or less mediocre?

Choose wisely. There are no do-overs.

Love. Kyleigh

Photo Note: The image on this post is a cropped personal photo of my Facebook feed, and the depicted content is not my original artwork. The Charlie Brown/Snoopy graphic is unsigned, and I have no knowledge of the source of its creation.

When we feel discomfort, we default to seeking what is more comfortable. Comfort is, well, comfortable—it’s familiar, easy, and soothing, and our natural human programming likes us to feel this way. In fact, we usually go out of our way to AVOID what will make us uncomfortable, because our carefully calibrated internal alarms start shrieking when we approach the “Danger Zone of Discomfort”—

Tough conversations.
Putting yourself out there with the possibility of rejection.
Being vulnerable.
Being wrong.
Failing.
Changing.
Crying in public.
Living with less stuff. Or less than the best stuff.
Giving from your poverty.
Giving up the illusion of perfection.
Taking action to get unstuck.
Standing in your truth in a room full of people who disagree with you.
Refusing to try something new and different because you’ll probably suck at it.
Loving the people in your life unconditionally.
Leaving a shitty relationship because you’d be alone.
Ditching a soul-sucking job because you’d have to start over.

The threat of these things (and countless others) drive us to seek the shelter of our comfort zone, because we believe it keeps us safe from life’s unpleasantness. The thing is, it doesn’t.

Staying in your comfort zone all the time just makes you lazy.

It’s the equivalent of super-gluing your butt to the sofa and turning it into your office—Netflix remote in one hand, tub of chocolate chip ice cream in the other, and smartphone nestled in the pocket of your Snuggie. Every day. All day. With this as the only aspiration of your life.

Is this really how you want to live?

The comfort of a life in sweatpants is tempting, but it will never make you happy. (No. NO! Uh-uh. Really, it won’t.) There’s no challenge, no adventure, no movement, no connection, no goals, no dreams, no achievement, no success, and definitely no fulfillment or satisfaction—just stagnation and a lot aloneness. Here’s the Truth:

Being comfortable is the wrong goal.

It’s only when you reach the end of your comfort zone and challenge the boundaries you find there that you can GROW. Personal growth is the birthplace of happiness. It’s the vital component to finding out who you are and what your life is about, and it’s the means to becoming who you are meant to be. Whenever you avoid discomfort, you push away your greatest opportunity to grow—and ultimately you reject your own happiness.

An undaunted life—one that is filled with joy, vibrancy + deep fulfillment—begins at the END of your comfort zone. Whenever you feel discomfort, it means you’ve reached that outer limit. Your Work is to bust through it and then keep on going.

Love. Kyleigh

P.S. Here’s some musical inspiration for you as you hop some fences and start exploring what’s on the other side of your comfort zone: https://youtu.be/lq5vrpwdMGM